Heat interchanger



Nov. 8, 1932. c;. H. PHELPS 1,886,498

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Patented Nov. 8, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GEORGE E. PHELPS, 0FWAREHOUSE POINT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO METROPOLITAN ENGINEERINGCOMPANY, OF BROOKLYN, NEVI YORK HEAT INTERCHANGER Application filedMarch 6, 1930. Serial No. 433,529.

My invention aims to provide an improved heat interchanger which isparticularly useful as a condenser for refrigerating apparatus and whichhas also features of advantage for various other situations such as theheating or cooling of the air of a room: The accompanying drawingsillustrate embodiments of the invention.

Fig. 1 is a plan of a condenser for a refrigerant.

Fig. 2 is an end View thereof.

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail inperspective.

Fig. 5 is an end view of an alternative style.

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are respectively a plan and a front and an endelevation of an alternative design which is also specially 'useful as acondenser for a refrigerant.

Fig. 9 is a developed elevation of the tubing of Fig. 7.

Fig. 10 is a perspective of the same as it is bent in the condenser.

Fig. 11 is a separate perspective view of the corrugated plate formingpart of the condenser.

Figs. 12 and 13 are diagrams in end and face elevation respectivelyillustrating an alternative arrangement.

In previous applications Serial Nos. 141,065 filed Oct. 12, 1926;239,875 filed Dec. 14, 1927, and 311,292 filed Oct. 9, 1928, I havedescribed certain improvements in refrigerating apparatus. The presentapplication is a continuation in part of said prior applications, beingbased on certain heat interchangers disclosed therein.

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 illustrate a condenser designed for a horizontalposition. It has a steel housing consisting of a top plate 11, a bottomplate 12 and side plates 13. The housing is open at opposite ends. Thereis a central opening in the top wall the location of which is indicatedby the dotted rectangle 5, Fig. 1.

The refrigerant gas from the compressor, assuming the interchanger usedas a condenser for a refrigerator, passes downwardly by pipes 14 and 15,thence through the coils of tubing indicated toward the center andfinally out of the pipe 16 to the refrigerating cabinet. The tubing isin heat conducting engagement with a radiating structure which presentsan extended area to the air blown through it and thus extracts heatrapidly from the refrigerant.

The radiating structure is made of aiplate or plates of conductivemetal, such for example as copper or tin plate. The tubing is also bestmade of thin seamless copper. But other metals may be used for theradiating structure and for the tubing.

As shown best in Fig. 1, a corrugated sheet is used with fins 17converging alternatively at top and bottom and connected in pairs bylongitudinal plates 18 and 19. divide the space into a large number ofsmall The fins thus passages in which the streams of air are eX- posedto large areas of heated metal.

The tubing extends transversely across the plates which form the outerfaces of the structure. These plates 18 and 19 are bent to form recesses20 and 21. The tubing is embraced in these recesses so as to provide awide area of contact and is intimately united or bonded thereto by heator pressure or both; as, for example, by soldering, brazing or welding,or by dipping in molten zinc or tin or solder.

The corrugated sheet can be formed in dies, first bending the webs orfins to parallel positions and finally bending them by endwise pressureto the oblique positions shown.

The tubing is bent backand forth in successive looped sections atalternate sides of the corrugated sheet. Entering from branch 14, alength 22 crosses on top. .At the end of 22 is a downward bend 23, thena return length 24 immediately below 22 (Fig. 3), a horizontal loop 25,a return length 26 parallel to 24. an upward bend 27 and a loop acrossthe top comprising the length 28, bend 29 and length 30: and so on tothe end, where it connects by a branch 31 with a cross pipe 32 leadingto the outlet 16. The tubing at the other side leads in a similar wayfrom the inlet 15 to the outlet 16.

Thus the tubing is in loops located on 0pposite faces of the corrugatedsheet and connccted by transverse bends like 23 and 27, all of which areat the same side. This is important in the manufacture of the apparatus,permitting the insertion of the corrugated sheet between the loops oftubing by springing the latter slightly apart.

There additional area is desirable, three radiating structures may beused as in Fig. 5. The central structure indicated as a whole at 33carries the tubing in its top and bottom faces. And two additionalradiating structures a4 and 35 of the same general design, though ofless depth, are applied to the top and bottom and united by any of themethods above referred to.

For condensers of refrigerating machines it is advisable to arrange thefins or transverse portions of the corrugated plate closer together thanin the case of radiators for heating the air. The tubing may be arrangedin various other ways than those described.

For example, instead of arranging it in two levels as shown, it may bearranged in any plurality of levels according to the total heightrequired,and with any appropriate number of radiating structuresarranged between the difi'erent levels of tubing and on top and bottom.

The heat exchanger is ads pted also to vari' ous other uses; such forexample as the heating of the air by circulating steam or other heatingmedium through the pipes or the cooling of the air by circulating coldbrine through the pipes. Also the flow of air through the exchanger maybe by means of a blower or by other positive means, or may be induced bysetting the corrugated structure on edge with the air passages verticalto act in the manner of flues, as in certain radiators for heating theair in a room and circulating it.

The invention may be used with other heating elements; as bysubstituting for the tubing illustrated, elongated chambers or conduitsof other shapes in cross section, or electric heating elements of the socalled strip type. The finned radiating structure may be made ofcorrugated plates extending integrally throughout its full length, or itmay be made in a plurality of separate sections or pieces, either spacedapart or arranged in a continuous structure.

The invention may be utilized also with a heating element extendingalong one side only of the radiating structure. And the fins may beunited to the heating element in various mechanical ways instead of bythe direct soldering and welding above referred to.

The lengthwise direction of the tubing is referred to as thelongitudinal direction, and the direction of the air passages astransverse. But these terms are used only relatively. The apparatus maybe arranged with the air fines in various horizontal directions or in avertical direction. which has the advantage of acting like a flue orchimney and inducing a draft of air through the passages. Figs. 6 to 11illustrate such an arrangement.

A. long continuous tube 31, Fig. 9, is bent hack and forth to form anumber of parallel lengths in a vertical plane and connected end to end.The pipes 32 and 33a represent the inlet and outlet. lVith these fixedat one end, the assemblage is then bent horizontally back and forth sothat each length is converted into three shorter lengths 31a, 31b and310, Fig. 10. We thus have a continuous tube assembled in lengthsarranged close to each other in three parallel vertical groups.Initially the spaces between the vertical series 31a and 31?) are madeto diverge at the left, and the series 3112 and 310 to diverge at theright so as to facilitate the insertion of the corrugatedsheets betweenthem.

Two such sheets are used, one located in each space as shown in Figs. 6,7 and 8. The specific shape is shown in Fig. 11. The sheet is bent toform transverse walls or fins 34 connected at alternate ends by plates35 and 36 in which are recesses 37 embracing the several lengths ofpipe. After these radiating structures are applied, one in each of thespaces between the vertical groups of tubes, the latter are clampedclosely against the sheets and the whole structure soldered by dipping,or otherwise united.

For such a dipped apparatus it is advantageous to have the successiveplates. as 35 for example, separated by a space which is at least equalto the width of such plates (instead of being brought closer togetherlike the plates 19 of Fig. 4). This is the design. shown in Figs. 6 and11. It facilitates the flowing of the molten soldering metal to thejoints.

Figs. 12 and 13show an arrangement in which the air passages and tubesare both horizontal. The tube is bent into a succession of horizontalloops 38, each consisting of two adjacent lengths; and'the radiatingstructure is in a series of separate sections 39 between the horizontalloops. Each section 39 is corrugated like those of Fig. 4, or it may bein the manner of Fig. 11. The result is a series of short transverse airfines.

The modifications and different uses to which I have referred above inconnection with Figs. 1 to 5 are applicable also to the subject-matterof Figs. 6 to 13. And those described in connection with Figs. 6 to 13are applicable to the subject-matter of Figs. 1 to 5.

Various other modifications may be made by tho e skilled in the artwithout departing from the invention as defined in the following claims.

\Vhat I claim is:

1'. A heat interchanger including acorrugated radiating structureforming channels for the passage of a draft of air and recessestransveise to said channels to receive lengths of tubing and tubing fora heating medium passed alternately across the opposite sides of saidradiating structure from one end thereof and received in said recesses.

52. A heat intcrchanger including a corrugated radiating structureforming channels for the passage of a draft of air and tubing in heatconducting contact therewith, said tubing being in successive loopsengaging alternately the opposite faces of the radiating structure, withconnections between the successive loops at one side only of thestructure so as to leave space for introduction of the structure betweenthe loops from the opposite side.

8. A heat interchanger including a corrugated radiating structureforming chan nels for the passage of a draft of air and tubing in heatconducting contact therewith, said tubing being in successive loopsengaging alternately the opposite faces of the radiating structure, withconnections between the successive loops at one side only of thestructure so as to leave space for introduction of the structure betweenthe loops from the opposite side, the radiating structure havingrecesses extending across the corrugations and embracing the tubing toprovide a 0011- siderable heat transmitting area from one to the other.

4. A heat interchanger including in combination longitudinally extendingtubing and a radiating structure in heat-conducting engagement with saidtubing and comprising a succession of fins forming transverselyextending channels for the passage of air, said fins being recessed atthe opposite faces of the structure and said tubing being embraced bythe recessed portions of said structure so as to provide a wide contactarea.

5. A heat interchanger including in com bination longitudinallyextending tubing and a radiating structure in heat-conducting engagementwith said tubing, said radiating structure comprising a sheet of metalcorrugated to form transverse fins connected alternately at oppositeedges by longitudinal portions forming opposite faces of the sheet, theopposite longitudinal portions being recessed and said tubing beingembraced by such recessed portions so as to provide a wide contact area.

6. A heat interchanger including in combination longitudinally extendingtubing and a radiating structure in heat-conducting engagement with saidtubing, said radiating structure comprising a sheet of metal corrugatedto form transverse fins connected alternately at opposite edges bylongitudinal portions forming opposite faces of the sheet, the oppositelongitudinal portions being re cessed and said tubing being en'ibracedby such recessed portions so as to provide a wide contact area. thespaces between longitudinal portions at the face of the sheet beingatleast bination longitudinally extending tubing and a radiatingstructure in heat-conducting engagement therewith, said tubingcomprising sections connected serially end to end and arranged in atleast three planes with a plurality of lengths of tubing in eachsection.

9. A heat interchanger including in combination longitudinally extendingtubing and a radiating structure in heat-conducting engagementtherewith, said tubing being continuous, bent back and forth to form amunber of substantially parallel lengths in one plane and benttransx'ersely of such plane to form each length into a plurality ofshorter lengths in planes transverse to the first plane.

10. A heat interchanger including in combination longitudinallyextending tubing and a radiating structure in heat-conducting engagementtherewith, said tubing comprising sections connected serially end to endand arranged in at least three planes with a plurality of lengths oftubing in each section, and said radiating structure comprising at leasttwo corrugated plates located respectively in the spaces between saidplanes.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

GEORGE H. PHELPS.

